1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed generally to the control of data networks serving mobile wireless users. In particular, the present invention is directed to a system for policy management in a data network that uses policy rules to control service data flows at service gateways.
2. Description of the Related Art
Traditionally, service gateways perform specific functions where they are directly in the user plane traffic. For example, a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) HTTP server processes WAP web traffic and translates between protocols. However, traditional service gateways have not been policy-enabled. Most of the management functions in the traditional gateways are scattered across the network and are done in localized and static fashion. Traditional service gateways do not have a policy function and are not able to communicate with the logically centralized policy management framework. Therefore, it can be appreciated that there is a significant need for a new type of policy management in edge gateways that will provide a dynamic policy framework. The present invention provides this, and other advantages as will be apparent from the following detailed description and accompanying figures.